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Chapter 2: Sea Monsters Are Blue

"And then the monster wrapped its long tail around my waist and pulled me under the water. Man, I thought it was my last minute in this world. That horrible beast really wanted to drown me, it kept me under water no matter how hard I tried to wriggle out of its grip. I pounded its tail with my fists, kicking and squeezing it, but I don't think the monster felt any of it. Guess its scales were too hard. Or it had a thick layer of fat, like a whale or a walrus, ya know."

"Ah," Face nodded, watching his friend indulgently. He should have known that if he asked Murdock what he had been doing all day, he would get some crazy, adventurous story.

He really wondered what a social and lively person like Murdock had been doing here on this remote island, with probably only 15, maybe 20 other people, the whole day.

When Face found the pilot's message in the morning, he had just shrugged, thinking that Murdock would return sometime around lunch, too bored and demanding some joint activity. However, the pilot surprised him. He didn't show up until evening, hungry and slightly sunburnt. Face thought that perhaps Murdock had been on the other side of the island, bothering the few people who had also come here to relax. But no one came asking Face to pick up the annoying Texan. And since Murdock hadn't jabbered about any new friendships, it was possible that he had been roaming around the island all alone.

One way or another, Face didn't believe a word of the story about a sea monster. Murdock had probably only seen a snake swimming in the shallow coastal water and it had roused his rich, childlike imagination for an action-packed but utterly unrealistic adventure. But that's why he liked that crazy guy. Even an ordinary day was never really ordinary when Murdock was nearby.

Face watched as his friend stuck a fork into the grilled fish and brought a good chunk of meat to his mouth. He caught himself smiling slightly at the sight of the pilot chewing happily with a satisfied grunt. He reminded himself that he, too, had food waiting on his plate, and took a smaller, more refined bite.

"Jeez, I'm so hungry. Haven't eaten since breakfast," Murdock informed him, taking another mouthful of fish.

The logical question now would be to ask him why he hadn't come back for lunch, or didn't take enough food with him. But Face knew that asking Murdock logical questions would only lead to further absurd explanations. He was far more interested in the end of the adventure story which, of course, took place only in Murdock's head, but the con man could bet his Vette on the fact that the pilot was convinced that it had really happened.

"So," Face asked after he swallowed his mouthful, "how did you save yourself? Don't tell me you killed the monster. I'm not buying that."

"Nah," Murdock shook his head sharply and shoved a forkful of vegetables into his mouth. "Billy saved me."

Face gritted his teeth in an attempt to ignore Murdock's impolite mumble with a full mouth. He tried to imagine a dog fighting with a sea monster. He had never really found out what breed Billy was. At times, he seemed like a small doggie that Murdock could easily carry in his arms. At other times, Billy seemed to be a huge dog that could drag a poor pilot along the ground. But it was certainly not an animal that could beat out any water monster.

"Oh come on, Murdock. I don't wanna hurt Billy's feelings, but a battle with a sea monster? You're kidding, aren't you?"

"No, I'm not," Murdock said seriously, reaching with his left hand under the table where he patted the empty air. "He's a good, brave boy."

"I'm not saying he isn't, but no dog can kill a sea monster."

"But I didn't say he killed it. He just drove it off."

"But… how?" Did he really mean that? Was he really trying to get information from a crazy man about an invisible dog driving a non-existent monster off? He must have been crazy himself.

Murdock scratched the back of his head, his forehead wrinkled as he thought hard.

"I'm not really sure. I was running out of oxygen and couldn't see much underwater. But I remember seeing Billy swimming around me to the monster's head. I wanted to shout at him to swim away, afraid the monster would bite him and kill him. Face," he fixed his brown eyes on Face with a power that was almost palpable, "never try to yell underwater when you're running out of air. I lost even the last remnants of oxygen I had. And I apparently passed out." He paused for a moment to chew on a slice of grilled zucchini. "When I came to, I was lying on the beach and Billy was sitting next to me. The monster was gone, so it must have been Billy who drove it away and pulled me out of the water."

'Yeah, it could have been,' Face thought.' And it must have been Billy, too, who squeezed water out of your lungs and gave you artificial respiration, buddy.'

Murdock swallowed the last bite of the fish and looked at his hand, musing. "I must have been lying there for a while 'cause my clothes were almost dry and my skin was burned slightly."

'And here we are. The crazy Texan fell asleep on the beach, had a wild dream, and woke up sunburnt.' Face hid an amused smile skilfully. But Murdock wouldn't have noticed, he was thoughtfully shoving a few peas around the plate.

"I once saw a mouse on our ranch that chased away a cat. The little fella ran between her legs, biting her paws and attacking her whenever she put her head down. Her patience eventually wore thin and she ran away, leaving the annoying little demon behind. Billy must have done the same thing, I guess. Or what do you think?"

"Well…" Face pretended to really think about it. No, he certainly didn't believe this story. But why hurt the pilot needlessly? Face studied his friend for a few seconds. He was sure that, right now, Murdock believed without a doubt that it had all happened. That a sea monster really appeared while he was wading in the tide. That he fought with it and lost. And that his dog, his devoted invisible dog, saved him. But somewhere deep inside, the pilot knew it was just his fantasy. That what he experienced had nothing to do with reality. But under that, even deeper, was something else - a voluntary denial. Deep down, Murdock had decided that a walk on the beach was too mundane and needed to be improved. Most of Murdock's current life was ordinary and boring, passing day by day according to the same hospital scenario. Life in a psychiatric ward wasn't very colorful, it was kind of black and white. Murdock himself would certainly say that it was only white. White walls, doctors and nurses in white coats, a white straitjacket, a white padded room, his white pills… so he learned to see colors where there weren't any. Invisible dogs, talking horses and even sea monsters. His fantasies were mostly innocent and amusing, sometimes annoying, and rarely dangerous. A monster driven away by his invisible dog wasn't so bad. Face could go with it. "Yeah, it could have happened like that, buddy. I remember I saw some birds drive away a much larger predatator. There were more than one of them, but Billy is a brave, nimble dog, he could have done it. If he hadn't, you wouldn't be here now, right? So thank God for Billy."

There was a faint wink. Murdock wasn't entirely sure if he really saw it or only imagined it, but did it matter? He grinned.

"Yeah. My little good boy. I'll buy him a big bone when we get back to LA. And a new ball." He patted the air under the table again, murmuring something Face couldn't catch. Something that was meant to be only for the ears of an invisible dog. Then Murdock raised his head. "Would you like some ice cream?"

"No, thanks, I'm full," Face shook his head. He had already had enough ice cream today. After a morning swim, he spent most of the day in a hammock with a good book and… well, maybe he should go for a walk with Murdock tomorrow. He didn't need to see any sea monsters, but he should move a little. If he was idle the whole week like he had been today and yesterday, he would end up last on Hannibal's obstacle course, and that always meant trouble.

Murdock fished a bucket of pistachio ice cream out from a small freezer and used a spoon to mine the sweet, light green substance. He lifted a full spoon close to his eyes and stared at it for a moment

"It was blue," he said suddenly.

"Huh?" Face frowned, still lost in unpleasant thoughts.

"That monster. It was blue."

"Uh… Okay. And that means…?"

Murdock looked at him, his brown eyes thoughtful and serious. "Hannibal's monsters are green. It doesn't matter if they come from a lake, sea or ocean. They're always green. But this one was blue."

Murdock licked the ice cream from the spoon and kept thinking. Yes, it was blue. Maybe… maybe there was a touch of green, but blue predominated. Blue-gray, actually. He knew the shade of blue. His gaze focused. He knew it because he was looking at it. Right here and now. Face's eyes.

Yes, that made sense. He always saw the ocean in Face's eyes. Azure blue water on a sunny day when everything was okay - not fine, but really okay. And the blue-gray of a cloudy day as the con man's mood turned south. Which meant… why were those eyes blue-gray now? Here on a sunny day?

"Face?" Murdock said softly, his voice tensed with sudden concern.

"Yeah?" Those eyes slid on him, blue and gray melted into each other.

Murdock licked his lips. "Do you think I should tell Hannibal? That the sea monsters are blue?"

Face blinked. Grateful for the distraction, he left his thoughts of dreadful obstacle courses and yelling colonels and endless running and focused on Murdock's words.

"Well, yeah. You probably should. If you saw that the monster was blue, then Hannibal should know he's been fooling people all the time." A light smile. On both sides.

Murdock nodded, watching the gray of the cloudy day fade, leaving only azure blue. "Yeah, it's definitely blue," he said, not knowing himself if he meant the sea monster, the ocean, or the pair of eyes smiling at him.
________________________________________________________________________________

This picture was drawn for Inktober52, the sixth prompt of the year - "MONSTER"

I couldn't resist the idea of a sea monster, so I decided to write a sequel to the story Build an Island. And I don't think that's the last part.

Description

Chapter 2: Sea Monsters Are Blue

"And then the monster wrapped its long tail around my waist and pulled me under the water. Man, I thought it was my last minute in this world. That horrible beast really wanted to drown me, it kept me under water no matter how hard I tried to wriggle out of its grip. I pounded its tail with my fists, kicking and squeezing it, but I don't think the monster felt any of it. Guess its scales were too hard. Or it had a thick layer of fat, like a whale or a walrus, ya know."

"Ah," Face nodded, watching his friend indulgently. He should have known that if he asked Murdock what he had been doing all day, he would get some crazy, adventurous story.

He really wondered what a social and lively person like Murdock had been doing here on this remote island, with probably only 15, maybe 20 other people, the whole day.

When Face found the pilot's message in the morning, he had just shrugged, thinking that Murdock would return sometime around lunch, too bored and demanding some joint activity. However, the pilot surprised him. He didn't show up until evening, hungry and slightly sunburnt. Face thought that perhaps Murdock had been on the other side of the island, bothering the few people who had also come here to relax. But no one came asking Face to pick up the annoying Texan. And since Murdock hadn't jabbered about any new friendships, it was possible that he had been roaming around the island all alone.

One way or another, Face didn't believe a word of the story about a sea monster. Murdock had probably only seen a snake swimming in the shallow coastal water and it had roused his rich, childlike imagination for an action-packed but utterly unrealistic adventure. But that's why he liked that crazy guy. Even an ordinary day was never really ordinary when Murdock was nearby.

Face watched as his friend stuck a fork into the grilled fish and brought a good chunk of meat to his mouth. He caught himself smiling slightly at the sight of the pilot chewing happily with a satisfied grunt. He reminded himself that he, too, had food waiting on his plate, and took a smaller, more refined bite.

"Jeez, I'm so hungry. Haven't eaten since breakfast," Murdock informed him, taking another mouthful of fish.

The logical question now would be to ask him why he hadn't come back for lunch, or didn't take enough food with him. But Face knew that asking Murdock logical questions would only lead to further absurd explanations. He was far more interested in the end of the adventure story which, of course, took place only in Murdock's head, but the con man could bet his Vette on the fact that the pilot was convinced that it had really happened.

"So," Face asked after he swallowed his mouthful, "how did you save yourself? Don't tell me you killed the monster. I'm not buying that."

"Nah," Murdock shook his head sharply and shoved a forkful of vegetables into his mouth. "Billy saved me."

Face gritted his teeth in an attempt to ignore Murdock's impolite mumble with a full mouth. He tried to imagine a dog fighting with a sea monster. He had never really found out what breed Billy was. At times, he seemed like a small doggie that Murdock could easily carry in his arms. At other times, Billy seemed to be a huge dog that could drag a poor pilot along the ground. But it was certainly not an animal that could beat out any water monster.

"Oh come on, Murdock. I don't wanna hurt Billy's feelings, but a battle with a sea monster? You're kidding, aren't you?"

"No, I'm not," Murdock said seriously, reaching with his left hand under the table where he patted the empty air. "He's a good, brave boy."

"I'm not saying he isn't, but no dog can kill a sea monster."

"But I didn't say he killed it. He just drove it off."

"But… how?" Did he really mean that? Was he really trying to get information from a crazy man about an invisible dog driving a non-existent monster off? He must have been crazy himself.

Murdock scratched the back of his head, his forehead wrinkled as he thought hard.

"I'm not really sure. I was running out of oxygen and couldn't see much underwater. But I remember seeing Billy swimming around me to the monster's head. I wanted to shout at him to swim away, afraid the monster would bite him and kill him. Face," he fixed his brown eyes on Face with a power that was almost palpable, "never try to yell underwater when you're running out of air. I lost even the last remnants of oxygen I had. And I apparently passed out." He paused for a moment to chew on a slice of grilled zucchini. "When I came to, I was lying on the beach and Billy was sitting next to me. The monster was gone, so it must have been Billy who drove it away and pulled me out of the water."

'Yeah, it could have been,' Face thought.' And it must have been Billy, too, who squeezed water out of your lungs and gave you artificial respiration, buddy.'

Murdock swallowed the last bite of the fish and looked at his hand, musing. "I must have been lying there for a while 'cause my clothes were almost dry and my skin was burned slightly."

'And here we are. The crazy Texan fell asleep on the beach, had a wild dream, and woke up sunburnt.' Face hid an amused smile skilfully. But Murdock wouldn't have noticed, he was thoughtfully shoving a few peas around the plate.

"I once saw a mouse on our ranch that chased away a cat. The little fella ran between her legs, biting her paws and attacking her whenever she put her head down. Her patience eventually wore thin and she ran away, leaving the annoying little demon behind. Billy must have done the same thing, I guess. Or what do you think?"

"Well…" Face pretended to really think about it. No, he certainly didn't believe this story. But why hurt the pilot needlessly? Face studied his friend for a few seconds. He was sure that, right now, Murdock believed without a doubt that it had all happened. That a sea monster really appeared while he was wading in the tide. That he fought with it and lost. And that his dog, his devoted invisible dog, saved him. But somewhere deep inside, the pilot knew it was just his fantasy. That what he experienced had nothing to do with reality. But under that, even deeper, was something else - a voluntary denial. Deep down, Murdock had decided that a walk on the beach was too mundane and needed to be improved. Most of Murdock's current life was ordinary and boring, passing day by day according to the same hospital scenario. Life in a psychiatric ward wasn't very colorful, it was kind of black and white. Murdock himself would certainly say that it was only white. White walls, doctors and nurses in white coats, a white straitjacket, a white padded room, his white pills… so he learned to see colors where there weren't any. Invisible dogs, talking horses and even sea monsters. His fantasies were mostly innocent and amusing, sometimes annoying, and rarely dangerous. A monster driven away by his invisible dog wasn't so bad. Face could go with it. "Yeah, it could have happened like that, buddy. I remember I saw some birds drive away a much larger predatator. There were more than one of them, but Billy is a brave, nimble dog, he could have done it. If he hadn't, you wouldn't be here now, right? So thank God for Billy."

There was a faint wink. Murdock wasn't entirely sure if he really saw it or only imagined it, but did it matter? He grinned.

"Yeah. My little good boy. I'll buy him a big bone when we get back to LA. And a new ball." He patted the air under the table again, murmuring something Face couldn't catch. Something that was meant to be only for the ears of an invisible dog. Then Murdock raised his head. "Would you like some ice cream?"

"No, thanks, I'm full," Face shook his head. He had already had enough ice cream today. After a morning swim, he spent most of the day in a hammock with a good book and… well, maybe he should go for a walk with Murdock tomorrow. He didn't need to see any sea monsters, but he should move a little. If he was idle the whole week like he had been today and yesterday, he would end up last on Hannibal's obstacle course, and that always meant trouble.

Murdock fished a bucket of pistachio ice cream out from a small freezer and used a spoon to mine the sweet, light green substance. He lifted a full spoon close to his eyes and stared at it for a moment

"It was blue," he said suddenly.

"Huh?" Face frowned, still lost in unpleasant thoughts.

"That monster. It was blue."

"Uh… Okay. And that means…?"

Murdock looked at him, his brown eyes thoughtful and serious. "Hannibal's monsters are green. It doesn't matter if they come from a lake, sea or ocean. They're always green. But this one was blue."

Murdock licked the ice cream from the spoon and kept thinking. Yes, it was blue. Maybe… maybe there was a touch of green, but blue predominated. Blue-gray, actually. He knew the shade of blue. His gaze focused. He knew it because he was looking at it. Right here and now. Face's eyes.

Yes, that made sense. He always saw the ocean in Face's eyes. Azure blue water on a sunny day when everything was okay - not fine, but really okay. And the blue-gray of a cloudy day as the con man's mood turned south. Which meant… why were those eyes blue-gray now? Here on a sunny day?

"Face?" Murdock said softly, his voice tensed with sudden concern.

"Yeah?" Those eyes slid on him, blue and gray melted into each other.

Murdock licked his lips. "Do you think I should tell Hannibal? That the sea monsters are blue?"

Face blinked. Grateful for the distraction, he left his thoughts of dreadful obstacle courses and yelling colonels and endless running and focused on Murdock's words.

"Well, yeah. You probably should. If you saw that the monster was blue, then Hannibal should know he's been fooling people all the time." A light smile. On both sides.

Murdock nodded, watching the gray of the cloudy day fade, leaving only azure blue. "Yeah, it's definitely blue," he said, not knowing himself if he meant the sea monster, the ocean, or the pair of eyes smiling at him.
________________________________________________________________________________

This picture was drawn for Inktober52, the sixth prompt of the year - "MONSTER"

I couldn't resist the idea of a sea monster, so I decided to write a sequel to the story Build an Island. And I don't think that's the last part.